This past Thursday night, while unconfirmed reports spread concerning the Brown University gunman, the network's Kaitlan Collins posted on social media, noting the confusion and directing people to her network’s 9pm newscast.
While CNN is certainly not a flawless news source, her message seemed accurate for numerous observers. It is one of the organizations where you can find grounded and largely dependable reporting – particularly during fast-moving events like the one unfolding in the vicinity of a New Hampshire storage facility.
A Precarious State Amid a Business Tug-of-War
Yet CNN, now four and a half decades old, finds itself in a vulnerable situation as two massive media empires compete for ownership of its corporate owner, Warner Bros Discovery.
Regardless of who wins, the future of CNN has become part of a major game of business acquisition, rather than as a question of what serves the news-consuming public.
“This represents another instance of the deep structural problems with origins in decades of governmental choices,” stated Victor Pickard, author of “Democracy Without Journalism?” and a professor of media policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The speculation about who will own Warner Bros Discovery – could it be Netflix or Paramount Skydance? – misses a more important point.
“It is often framed as a corporate drama with key players as the central actors, but there is very little discussion of the societal benefit,” Pickard said.
A Further Element: Donald Trump
This situation is further muddied by Donald Trump’s views about a network he has consistently labeled as perhaps his chief “fake news” adversary.
Think back to the chants of “CNN sucks!” at Trump's rallies, his team's disciplinary revocation of reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials, or his sparring with Collins in White House briefings.
Trump now asserts that the network requires new ownership. You can read that as ownership that will protect him from criticism and scrutiny. That is one reason why he seems to support Paramount Skydance, which has made a unsolicited offer.
There is a basis to like that bidder more. For one thing, it is led by David Ellison, son of the ally of Trump Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest people.
The company, owner of CBS News, also recently placed the right-leaning Bari Weiss, known for her “anti-woke” beliefs, as the lead editor of that storied news network.
An Outcome of Continued Uncertainty
It is important to note, if Netflix prevails, CNN and other cable outlets would first be spun off into a separate entity. That would be a welcome development to many at the network, but it’s hardly a secure position. That structure could set up CNN for yet another acquisition. It never ends.
If you ask Timothy Wu, a lot of this is illegal, anyway. The influential voice of big tech’s dominance recently argued that anti-trust laws should disallow both deals.
“Each proposed deal would be bad for the country, and both should be contested by regulators,” Wu stated.
The Core Issue and a Way Ahead
Whatever happens regarding CNN, the larger issue remains.
“Our current system is a highly structure that undermines democracy, but we ought not succumb to a sense of powerlessness,” Pickard said. Government actions – originating in the 1930s and 1940s – helped to build this hyper-commercialized monster, and new policy decisions can address it.
Can reform occur in an era where the Federal Communications Commission chair refuses to acknowledge that the agency is independent? Overhaul is a distant prospect now, but that doesn’t mean it will not happen in the future.
Initiatives that bolster independent news organizations, aid local journalism, fund public media, and prohibit the concentration of media power in very few hands are achievable – they are vital for a functioning democracy.
Regarding media ownership, bigger isn’t better. And news organizations like CNN cannot be pieces in the latest merger game.
